Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam chief Vijay took oath as the chief minister of Tamil Nadu on Sunday.
He was administered the oath of office by Governor Rajendra Arlekar during a ceremony at Chennai’s Nehru stadium attended by the Congress’ Rahul Gandhi and other leaders.
Nine other TVK leaders were sworn-in as ministers on Sunday.
With the TVK forming the government in Tamil Nadu, the state has, for the first time in nearly six decades, broken away from the alternating rule of its two dominant Dravidian parties: the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
A day earlier, the actor-turned politician met Arlekar at the Lok Bhavan and staked claim to form the government. He handed over letters of support from the Congress, Communist Party of India, Communist Party of India (Marxist), the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi and the Indian Union Muslim League. With this, Vijay has the support of 121 MLAs.
The governor has directed the TVK chief to seek a vote of confidence in the Assembly by May 13.
This came five days after the TVK, on its electoral debut, emerged as the single-largest party in the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
Vijay’s party won 108 seats in the 234-member Assembly, falling short of the majority mark of 118. Therefore, it requires the support of smaller parties to form the government.
The effective strength of the TVK is 107 because Vijay is required to vacate one of the two seats he won.
On Friday, the Communist Party of India and the Communist Party of India (Marxist), each having two seats, announced their support for the TVK. The Congress, which won five seats, had declared its support for the Vijay-led party on Wednesday.
On Saturday, the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi also confirmed its support for the Vijay-led party.
After Vijay staked claim to form the government, Arlekar had for two consecutive days reportedly asked the TVK chief to prove that he had secured a majority.
The Congress, the CPI, the CPI(M) and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi had contested the elections as part of the alliance led by the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam.
The MK Stalin-led DMK won 59 constituencies in the polls. The National Democratic Alliance, mainly comprising the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Bharatiya Janata Party, won 53 seats.
Edited by Tanya Shrivastava
Also read:
Tamil Nadu: After defeat in the Assembly polls, Dravidian parties face unprecedented crisis
How did Vijay break the Dravidian duopoly? And what lies ahead for Tamil Nadu?
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